Written by: Waseem Abbas
Posted on: February 19, 2024 | 
| 中文
All the team captains with the trophy of Pakistan Super League (PSL) 9
Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2024 begins amidst political outcry that overshadowed the glitter of the annual cricket festival. Islamabad United defeated the defending champions, Lahore Qalandars, by 8 wickets in the opening match of the tournament on Sunday, the 17th of February. On the second day of the tournament, Quetta Gladiators defeated Peshawar Zalmi by 16 runs, while Multan Sultans thrashed Karachi Kings by 55 runs. All six teams have assembled strong squads, comprising both local and international players, for PSL 8, which will continue till the 18th of March in Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi.
Peshawar Zalmi's Saim Ayub plays a shot against Quetta Gladiators
Pakistan Super League attracted big names in the international circuit in its initial years, as the world's best cricketers of the time such as AB De-Villiers, Brendon McCullum, Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Faf Duplessie, Ian Morgan, Imran Tahir amongst others, played the tournament. Unfortunately, it has now become the resort for retired players and those dropped from their national teams. The increasing number of T20 leagues around the world, stagnant players' salaries in PSL, and the rise of the Indian Premier League (IPL), contributed to the fall of PSL as a brand.
T20 franchise cricket has increased multifold in recent years, as every major cri6layed simultaneously: the South Africa T20, the International League 2024 UAE and the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). Players are spoiled by a plethora of choices, which makes signing premium players extremely difficult given the fixed salary caps in PSL. With the draft system in place, which has fixed salaries for players in each of the six categories, the incentive for the top players to play the PSL is diminished, especially those with IPL contracts. In order to attract big names, the PSL management should introduce an auction system, like IPL. IPL is usually scheduled after PSL, in May and June, due to which international stars prefer not to play PSL, as it diminishes their chances in the cash-rich IPL. Many players, around 12 so far, have withdrawn from PSL after initially signing it, citing fitness, national duties and other reasons.
Multan Sultan's young fans coming towards the ground
Defending champions have one of the best fast bowling units, with Shaheen (Captain), Rauf and Zaman leading the pack, while their spin department looks too fragile, especially due to the absence of their spin wizard, Rashid Khan, due to an injury. Their foreign stock is limited, with experienced allrounders, David Weise and Sikandar Raza, being the only exceptions. Fakhar Zaman, Russie Van Dur Dussen, Sahibzada Farhan and Abdullah Shafiq will be spearheading the top order, while Raza and Weise will manage the workload down the order. Qalandars have only one specialist wicketkeeper in Shai Hope, who is not a T20 specialist, which can haunt them going forward, especially if they cannot squeeze him into the top order. The consecutive champions of the last two PSL seasons, Lahore Qalandars, will face difficulty in maintaining previous years' performance.
Perhaps no team comes close to Islamabad United when it comes to planning and assembling great squads with all bases covered, and this year is no exception. Shadab Khan-led Islamabad United has a domestic core that can challenge any team with Imad Wasim, Azam Khan, Naseem Shah, Haider Ali and Faheem Ashraf. Their experienced foreign batters at United, Alex Hales and Colin Munro, have carried the weight of the team over the years. In an interesting move, United has selected three brothers: international star Naseem Shah, domestic performer Hunain Shah and Under-19 sensation Ubaid Shah, who are all fiery fast bowlers. The Shah brothers along with Ruman Raees, Obed McCoy, Tymal Mills and Faheem will make a fiery, yet skillful, fast-bowling combination.
(L to R) Hunain Shah, Ubaid Shah and Naseem Shah
Quetta Gladiators have had disappointing PSL campaigns in the last few years after success in the initial years, and they are looking to revitalize their team by bringing changes in team management. Gladiators have relieved their Head Coach Moeen Khan and Captain Sarfraz Ahmed of their responsibilities, while both were involved with the franchise since the inception of PSL. Instead, Shane Watson and Rille Rossow have been inducted as coach and captain respectively. Watson-led Quetta has assembled one of the best bowling attacks in the tournament, with experienced pacers Muhammad Amir, Muhammad Hasnain and Wasim Junior have been complemented by Usman Qadri and Abrar Ahmed in spin bowling. Their foreign batsmen are tailor-made for T20 cricket, while their local batters who are bound to play, like Sarfraz Ahmed (Wicket-keeper) and Saud Shakeel (Vice-Captain), are not known for explosive batting that is needed at this stage. If everything goes according to plan, Gladiators are one the strongest contenders for the trophy.
Quetta's openers, Jason Roy and Saud Shakeel, playing against Peshawar Zalmi
Peshawar Zalmi has the most explosive batting unit, as Babar Azam-led Zalmi has Muhammad Haris, Saim Ayub, Asif Ali, Tom Cohler Cadmore and Rowman Powell. The balance of Zalmi’s squad, especially the bowling department, has been greatly challenged by the withdrawal of their originally signed players like Lungi Ngidi, Naveen ul Haq, Noor Ahmed and Khurram Shehzad. Salam Irshad, Aamir Jamal, Mehran Mumtaz and Arif Yaqoob, the new spin sensation at the domestic level, will be at the helm of the bowling department, supported by Luke Wood, Waqar Salamkhel and Shmar Joseph from the foreign category. Zalmi batters have the capability to post big scores, but it will be a great challenge for the inexperienced bowling unit to defend totals in crunch games, which makes Zalmi less threatening in this PSL.
Multan Sultans have one of the most balanced squads in this PSL, as its squad has a fine combination of local and foreign players. Their batting unit is loaded with power and composure, and is arguably one of the best in the competition, as Muhammad Rizwan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Tayyab Tahir and Yasir Khan from Pakistan are complemented by Jhonson Charles, David Malan, Usman Khan and Reza Hendricks in foreign category. Their bowling is dependent on local cricketers, as the performers of last season including Abbas Afridi, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usama Mir and Ihsan Ullah are supported by the English trio of Chris Jordan, David Willey and Olly Stone. If something bizarre does not happen with the Sultans, they are expected to be the contenders to clinch the trophy.
Multan Sultan's Reza Hendricks plays a sweep shot against Karachi Kings
Karachi Kings have overhauled their team management and squad, appointing Shan Masood as the new captain in place of their long-standing skipper Imad Wasim, who has been traded to Islamabad United for Hasan Ali. Kings’ preparations for the tournament have also been disturbed by the withdrawal or partial absence of its foreign core, Tabriz Shamsi, Jamie Overton, Tim Seifert and Kieron Pollard. Their bowling unit looks fragile, as their specialist bowlers are either inexperienced or unfamiliar with local conditions. They have a few good all-rounders, as Muhammad Nawaz is expected to play Imad's role, while Anwar Ali and Daniel Sams are medium-pacers who can hit the ball out of the park. James Vince, Shan Masood, Shoaib Malik and Muhammad Akhlaq are experienced batters, who can control the flow of the game and accelerate when required.
It is mandatory for each PSL team to play one emerging player, those who have played less than 10 PSL games, and who have not yet played international cricket. It has helped in nurturing and grooming upcoming talents for the national team, as the likes of Shaheen Shah, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan have started their PSL careers as emerging players. Emerging players to watch out for in this PSL include Khawaja Nafay, Syed Faridoun, Yasir Khan, Ubaid Shah, Irfan Khan, Faisal Akram, Muhammad Zeeshan and Hunain Shah.
Multan Sultan's Reza Hendricks plays a sweep shot against Karachi Kings
The final of PSL 2024 will be played in National Stadium, Karachi, on the 18th of March at 7 pm.
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