The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has booked a complete hotel for the remaining matches of Pakistan Super League (PSL 6). The 300-room hotel will accommodate all six teams, officials and commentators.
According to details, all rooms, halls, conference rooms and restaurants will be fully managed by the PCB. Hotels, transport, ground staff and broadcasters will remain inside the bubble under COVID-19 protocols.
PCB has also settled a deal with a British company to maintain the bio-secure bubble for PSL. The Board has prepared the agreement documents and has sent them to a UK-Based company named Restrata.
After seeing the company’s performance in the PSL, talks will be held with the company for the country’s next cricket season.
The bio-bubble protocols of the competition will be decided by Restrata. It will be their responsibility to fully implement the protocols, monitor and manage the bio-secure and have a response and reaction to positive tests.
The board will formally announce the company’s deployment after they sign the agreement.
It must be noted here that PSL 6 was postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the bio-secure bubble. As many as six cricketers and a staff member had tested COVID-19 positive.
PCB announced last week that the remaining matches of the competition will be held from June 1-20 at the National Stadium in Karachi. All participants will be required to observe a seven-day quarantine period, which will commence from May 22 in one hotel. Following three days of training sessions, HBL PSL 6 matches will resume on June 1 with the final scheduled for June 20.
The coronavirus pandemic has turned all the world’s industries upside down and sports has been no exception.
The resumption of sporting events after the outbreak of the pandemic has been nothing short of a blessing for the fans as well as the players but its success was contingent upon whether the players would comply with the COVID protocols or not. There can be no denying that staying inside the bubble, not interacting with outsiders and playing in empty or half-empty stadiums would take a physical and psychological toll on them but it was expected of them to be acutely aware of their responsibilities and not to contravene the rules. However, the reality was different as the matter was handled carelessly and scores of players flouted the restrictions. The same was the case in PSL 2021, as a consequence of which, it has screeched to an indefinite halt.
The guidelines explicitly mentioned that anyone who attends the game would be required to wear a face mask throughout the duration of the game and observe social distancing. However, as the screengrab from one of the matches below shows, the implementation of these rules was nowhere to be seen.
Even worse, celebrities and social media influencers like Shahveer Jafry and Dananeer Mobeen were seen interacting with the players and team owners making an absolute mockery of the health protocols. None of the breaches mentioned thereof went unpunished thereby setting a wrong precedent.
Following the news of Australian leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed testing positive for the virus, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) should have been more cautious and stringent with restrictions but instead, Multan Sultans bowling coach Azhar Mahmood was allowed to throw a birthday party that was also attended by a number of players. This surge in the virus cases, due in large part to management’s carelessness (six players and one member from the team officials tested positive), behooved the PCB to postpone the league who had no option but to swallow the bitter truth that they have been incompetent in ensuring that the tournament is smooth sailing.
The blame-shifting game instantly began, media outlets started peddling hyperbolic and even false reports and overseas players (on the condition of anonymity) averred that the bio-secure bubble was not well-maintained. PSL is in its boom years and is improving over time but untoward incidents like these will blemish its image.
Responding to the backlash in his presser, PCB’s Chief Executive Wasim Khan admitted that they weren’t equal to the task.
“It was a great disappointment for us that we found ourselves in a situation where neither us nor others are able to provide what we need to provide and that is the full protection for players,” Wasim said.
“This is a collective effort that we all had a responsibility to actually police and self-police that environment. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to do it effectively enough. Hence, we find ourselves in this situation today,” he added.
As in, the uppermost task on PCB’s plate now is to find a window in a jam-packed schedule in which it can hold the remaining games of the league. Pakistan is set to play South Africa in April followed by a tour of Zimbabwe but reports suggest that Pakistan will push these tours to accommodate the remaining matches of the league.
I’m no epidemiologist thus it would be naïve to comment on the spread of the virus and measures to mitigate the virus but it is not rocket science to understand that carelessness over a deadly contagious pandemic is downright buffoonery. There’s no point in crying over spilt milk but whenever the PSL resumes, PCB should ensure that it learns from its mistakes and the remaining tournament goes without any chaos untoward incident.
Former chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Najam Sethi has criticised the board and the management of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) over the way the sixth edition of the tournament was handled. In a series of tweets, Sethi, who launched the league in 2016, highlighted the problems and suggested some solutions to resume the event with better planning.
“Bio-secure bubble for six teams, support staff, commentators, broadcast teams, etc is very difficult,” said Sethi. “It should have been outsourced to [a] competent [and] professional third-party like Ministry of Health, Security Agencies as during IPL in Dubai, NZ, SL, etc.”
Highlighting the problems, Sethi said: “COVID tests were not done regularly. In fact, the broadcast teams, ground staff at stadium and hotels, etc were outside the bubble while being in constant touch and contact with players.”
2. COVID TESTS WERE NOT DONE REGULARLY. I N FACT, THE BROADCAST TEAMS, GROUND STAFF AT STADIUM AND HOTELS , ETC, WERE OUTSIDE THE BUBBLE WHILE BEING IN CONSTANT TOUCH AND CONTACT WITH PLAYERS.
Sethi also said that the reputation, trust and credibility of PSL and PCB has suffered and “big damage has been done, especially with foreign teams and players”.
He further said: “Commercial interests of all partners, sponsors, franchises, rights holders, etc in PSL 6 have suffered enormously. They will claim damages and conflict will arise.” The former chairperson feared that PSL might go bankrupt given the losses suffered.
4. COMMERCIAL INTERESTS OF ALL PARTNERS, SPONSORS, FRANCHISES, RIGHTS HOLDERS, ETC IN PSL6 HAVE SUFFERED ENORMOUSLY. THEY WILL CLAIM DAMAGES AND CONFLICT WILL ARISE.
Presenting a list of solutions, Sethi suggested that PCB should make immediate arrangements to shift the remaining matches of PSL6 to United Arab Emirates (UAE), take franchises and other contracted parties into confidence and assure them that PCB will bear the full cost of this arrangement and convince foreign players for availability in UAE.
6. SOLUTIONS: (A) IMMEDIATE MAKE ARRANGEMENTS TO SHIFT REMAINING MATCHES OF PSL6 TO UAE (B) TAKE FRANCHISES AND OTHER CONTRACTED PARTIES INTO CONFIDENCE AND ASSURE THEM THAT PCB WILL BEAR THE FULL COST OF THIS ARRANGEMENT. (C) CONVINCE FOREIGN PLAYERS FOR AVAILABILITY IN UAE
Earlier, when the league was postponed, the former Chairman expressed his disappointment over the development saying: “We — the people, media, security agencies, franchises and players — built PSL brand with sweat, blood and tears.”
“The nation is reeling with despair and outrage at criminal negligence by this PCB Admin that has disrupted the tournament,” he added.
We — the people, media, security agencies, franchises and players — built PSL brand with sweat, blood and tears. The nation is reeling with despair and outrage at criminal negligence by this PCB Admin that has disrupted the tournament!
Dale Steyn has issued a clarification over his comments on the Indian Premier League (IPL). The South African great, in an interview had said that “cricket kind of gets forgotten” in the money talks in IPL, adding that Lanka Premier League (LPL) and the Pakistan Super League (PSL) focus more on cricket compared to the IPL.
“I found that playing in those other leagues was slightly more rewarding as a player,” Steyn had said while talking about his IPL experience. “I think when you go to the IPL there are such big squads and so many big names and so much emphasis on the amount of money that the players earn that somewhere along the line the cricket kind of gets forgotten. When you come to the PSL or the LPL, there’s an importance on the cricket.”
Steyn’s comments had stirred up a storm in India with Indians incensed at the fact that he praised the PSL over the IPL.
Following the backlash, the bowler clarified him stance on the matter saying that “IPL has been nothing short of amazing in my career”.
Steyn said that he had not intended to degrade, insult or compare any of the cricket leagues.
“Social media and words out of context can often do that. My apologies if this has upset anyone. Much love,” he tweeted.
IPL has been nothing short of amazing in my career, as well as other players too.
My words were never intended to be degrading, insulting, or comparing of any leagues. Social media and words out of context can often do that.
The South African pacer has had an impressive record as far as the IPL is concerned. The highest auction price for the fast bowler came in consecutive seasons in 2014 and 2015, when Sunrisers Hyderabad snapped him up for INR 9.5 crore (approx. USD 1.3 million today). He has taken 97 IPL wickets at 6.91, making him one of the most economical bowlers of the cricket league.
Meanwhile reaction from most Indian IPL fans on Twitter was quite aggressive, with some hurling personal insults at Steyn.
IPL produced so many talented players from Ashwin to Natarajan but playing psl is useless only retired and out of form players like Steyn playing psl
Players like @MHafeez22 are becoming better and better in their old age & see Steyn. I have seen him in IPL when Rahul was smashing him all around and today he just did the same. Dear Steyn, don’t mind but get the retirement before ending your career on worst note.@aaliaaaliyapic.twitter.com/hi3SFdvSlM
Dale Steyn in IPL since 2015:- Matches:- 12 Wickets:- 8 Avg:- 48.625 SR:- 30.5 Eco:- 9.56.. Definitely it has been less rewarding for him.. he definitely forgot Cricket in IPL to some extent..
— Muzammil Requests you to wear a mask. (@Muz_7Dec2000) March 2, 2021
steyn knows that he ball to easy batters in PSL so yaa its rewarding but IPL is harder than psl here steyn got destroyed n then he decided to ran away from it
IPl has super quality n PSL players has low pressure of money more techniqal flaws mainly easy compare to ipl
On the other hand, Pakistani fast bowler Hassan Ali has some other remarks about the South African player. Taking to Twitter, Hassan shared a picture with Steyn, teaching him some bowling techniques. “Dale, you are my favorite. That’s it, that’s the tweet,” he wrote.
Former South African pacer Dale Steyn, who is playing for Quetta Gladiators in the ongoing sixth edition of Pakistan Super League (PSL), believes that the Indian Premier League (IPL) is less rewarding compared to other leagues in the world.
Speaking to an online publication, Steyn said that cricket gets forgotten, amid money talks, in the IPL which is why he decided to skip the last season.
“I wanted some time off. I found that playing in these other leagues was slightly more rewarding as a player. I think when you go to IPL, there are such big squads and so many big names and so much emphasis on maybe the amount of money players earn and everything like that, so sometimes, somewhere down the line, cricket gets forgotten,” said Steyn.
“When you come to like a PSL or the Sri Lankan Premier League (SPL), for that matter, there is an importance on the cricket. I have only been here for a couple of days and I have had people in and out of my room, just wanting to know about where I have played and how I went about it. Whereas, when I go to something like IPL that gets forgotten and the main topic is how much money did you go for in this IPL?”
“That’s just me being brutally honest,” he added.
“I wanted to stay away from that and really put more emphasis on playing and bringing good vibes to good cricket teams and tournaments I feel are worth it,” said the cricket star.
Steyn also praised the “breeding machine” of Pakistan’s fast bowlers and called Babar Azam “a wonderful player”.
“There is a breeding machine of fast bowlers here in Pakistan, which is great to see because the wickets are not conducive to fast bowlers,” said the South African great. “I had a chat with Shaheen [Afridi] last year – I think he broke his thumb. He was down but he was amazing. At Melbourne Stars, I had Haris Rauf with me, and I was really impressed by him. Not long after that, he played for Pakistan.”
“Babar is a great player and it would be a great opportunity to get him out or bowl against him. But you never know, I might not get to bowl against him because it’s only four overs or he might get out for a duck. But he’s been fantastic [in] the last couple of years,” said Steyn.
Meanwhile, Indians are not happy with Steyn’s statement and are criticising him on social media.
don’t escalate it ,bakis want it to create controversy ,dale steyn was good only in tests not t20s ,premier south african bowlers like rabada & nortje are in IPL https://t.co/3rbH401flg
We don’t give a fuck about anybody’s opinion !! and insecure ? LOL ..Steyn Himself knows that nobody gonna to Buy him in auctions hence he decided to pull out his name, Last Time Due to ABD RCB Bought him and this time Even ABD Declined his request to retain him !! IPL >Peeassal
What I see is reading an imminent story of drug overdose or a suicide or some other tragic news about Steyn. Simon Doull was right. Steyn is in midlife crisis. The way he looks and the way he sounds, something is not right and the guy needs help. Feel sorry for the guy.
Didn’t expected this from Steyn. RCB fans gave him so much love even at this stage of his career when he is getting smashed from batsman like Wahab. The respect Steyn, AB, Gayle, Watson and Malinga gets in IPL is second to none. https://t.co/0mSG5iCgey
According to Cricinfo, Steyn’s “career trajectory has coincided with the rise of the IPL and has seen him become one of the more prized assets for any IPL franchise, and has consistently seen heavy competition for his signature. The highest auction price for the fast bowler came in consecutive seasons in 2014 and 2015, when Sunrisers Hyderabad snapped him up for INR 9.5 crore (approx. USD 1.3 million today). He has taken 97 IPL wickets at 6.91, making him, by some distance, the most economical fast bowler among players with over 50 wickets in the league.”
Lahore Qalandars beat Karachi Kings at the 11th match of Pakistan Super League’s (PSL) sixth edition on Sunday in National Stadium Karachi.
Kings’ Sharjeel Khan (64 off 39 balls) and Mohammad Nabi (57 off 35 balls) were able to steer the side to the handsome total, after an early fall of wickets in powerplay.
However, the Qalandars lost two early wickets but Fakhar Zaman took the charge to sail the boat of the side to victory with his unbeaten 83 runs off 54 balls. Ben Dunk also scored a much need half century, scoring 57 off 43 balls.
Fakhar got dismissed by Daniel Christian which ended in a blessing in disguise and David Wiese blasted 31 runs off just 9 balls to guide his team to victory.
Kings were pretty confident as a day before they achieved a remarkable win over Multan Sultans when they convincingly chased 198 with seven balls to spare and ended up with high confidence.
The Qalandars’ performance, today, however, showed that in the battle of the nerves, they can easily whip any opponent, beating Kings by six wickets.
Multan Sultans has officially announced that the Pakistan Super League’s (PSL) franchise is no longer owned by Ali Khan Tareen and Alamgir Tareen is now the sole owner of the #JanoobKiPehchaan.
“Pursuant to an agreement between the co-owners, the franchise has started it’s HBL PSL6 journey under the sole management of Mr Alamgir Tareen,” read an official statement issued by the team. “Internal process for the transferring of the ownership rights has already begun and all formalities shall be concluded soon.”
“The Multan Sultans franchise appreciates the contributions made by Mr Ali Tareen during the last two seasons and the franchise will no doubt continue to benefit from his support,” it continued.
“Meanwhile, Mr Ali Tareen intends to increase his focus on grassroots cricket development projects and the domestic cricket structure in particular in South Punjab,” added the statement.
Earlier, journalist Umar Farooq Kalson had stated: “The Multan Sultans ownership consortium has been broken. Alamgir Tareen has taken over complete ownership of the franchise, with Ali Tareen no longer with the franchise in any capacity.”
BREAKING NEWS: The Multan Sultans ownership consortium has been broken. Alamgir Tareen has taken over complete ownership of the franchise, with Ali Tareen no longer with the franchise in any capacity. #PSL6
Social media sensation Dananeer Mobeen, the ‘Pawri Girl’ from Peshawar, has hinted at a collaboration with the Peshawar Zalmi as the Pakistan Super League kicks off today.
Dananeer posted a photo on her Instagram account with the caption, “Yellow is the official colour of the season! Can you guess what’s coming next? #kingdom.”
Dananeer Mobeen rose to fame after she posted a video clip ‘Pawri Ho Rahi Ha’. In the video, she was heard saying: “yeh humari car hai, yeh hum hain, aur yeh humari pawri ho rai hai” (This is our car, this is us, and this is our pawri (party) going on).
Soon after the video went viral, ‘Pawri Ho Rai Hai’ became a major memes trend in Pakistan and also across the border. Many celebrities from Pakistan and India recreated the ‘Pawri Ho rai Hai’.
Female Cricket Presenter from Australia, Erin Holland expressed, disappointment for not being a part of Pakistan Super League (PSL) this year.
Holland, the wife of Ben Cutting, who will represent Quetta Gladiators in PSL 6, reacted to PSL 6’s commentators and presenters’ roster on Twitter. “Very disappointed not to be involved this year. I wish everyone all the best for what’s sure to be a huge tournament again – thanks for all the support, and hope to see everyone again next year,” she wrote.
Very disappointed not to be involved this year. I wish everyone all the best for what’s sure to be a huge tournament again – thanks for all the support, and hope to see everyone again next year xx
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday announced a 14-member list of commentators and presenters for the sixth edition of Pakistan Super League (PSL) featuring big international and local names.
Former England captain David Gower will make his debut this time in the commentary panel of HBL PSL 6 along with former New Zealand bowler and known commentator Simon Doull. The star-studded commentary roster also includes former South African all-rounder JP Duminy and Zimbabwean commentator Mpumelelo Mbangwa.
Other international names involved are Danny Morrison, Dominic Cork and Alan Walkins, who has been one of the most popular PSL voices in the previous seasons.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani commentators list includes both bi-lingual and Urdu commentators. Bazid Khan, Ramiz Raja, Sana Mir and Urooj Mumtaz will be doing bi-lingual commentary while renowned Tariq Saeed and Sikandar Bakht will be part of the panel as Urdu commentators. While Zainab Abbas will be the official presenter of this season.
PSL 6 will start on February 20 at National Stadium Karachi, which will host 20 matches. The league will move to Lahore in the second phase and as many as 14 matches including Playoffs and the final will be played till March 22.
Following the decision of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) to allow 20 percent crowd to attend each matchday of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 6, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday confirmed the ticket prices for 30 of the 34 matches, which will be played from February 20 to March 16. Ticket denominations for the Qualifier, two Eliminators and the final, to be played from March 18-22, will be announced closer to time.
According to a press release, online sale of tickets will start on Wednesday at 10 00 (Pakistan time) and fans can visit www.bookme.pk to purchase match tickets and select their preferred enclosure and choice of seat.
Fans can also call the Bookme helpline (03137786888) to book their tickets for which CNIC number and phone number is mandatory. When the match ticket has been confirmed, the customer will be sent a token number on the registered phone so that the customer can make the payment at the closest Jazzcash/Easypaisa shop. Upon payment, the customer will receive an e-ticket code along with a Quick Response (QR) Code, which the customer can use to print the ticket or show the SMS at the entry gate on match day.
To encourage families to attend the marquee event, the PCB has reserved certain enclosures of the National Stadium Karachi and Gaddafi Stadium Lahore for families.
At the National Stadium, enclosures reserved for the families include Hanif Mohammad (VIP Enclosure), Wasim Akram (Premium Enclosure), Zaheer Abbas, Iqbal Qasim and Nasimul Ghani Enclosures (First-Class Enclosures), and Intikhab Alam Enclosure (General) while family enclosures at the Gaddafi Stadium include: Fazal Mahmood (VIP Enclosure), Saeed Anwar (Premier Enclosure), Abdul Qadir (First-Class Enclosure) and Nazar, Quaid, Zaheer Abbas and Majid Khan (General Enclosure).
For Saturday’s tournament opener between Karachi Kings and Quetta Gladiators, which will begin at 7 pm, cost of VIP stands (Hanif Mohammad and Javed Miandad Enclosures) have been fixed at Rs 5,000, while the price of the First-Class stands (Zaheer Abbas, Asif Iqbal, Waqar Hasan, Majid Khan, Iqbal Qasim and Nasimul Ghani Enclosures) have been kept at Rs 4,000. Similarly, price of Premium stands (Quaid, Wasim Akram and Imran Khan Enclosure) has been set at Rs 3,000, while the General stand tickets (Wasim Bari, Mohammad Brothers and Intikhab Alam Enclosure) have been fixed at Rs 2,000.
For Sunday’s double-header between Lahore Qalandars and Peshawar Zalmi, and Islamabad United and Multan Sultans, which will start at 2 pm and 7 pm, respectively, cost of VIP stands (Hanif Mohammad and Javed Miandad Enclosures) have been fixed at Rs 4,000, while the price of the First-Class stands (Zaheer Abbas, Asif Iqbal, Waqar Hasan, Majid Khan, Iqbal Qasim and Nasimul Ghani Enclosures) have been kept at Rs 3,000. Similarly, price of Premium stands (Quaid, Wasim Akram and Imran Khan Enclosure) has been set at Rs 2,000, while the General stand tickets (Wasim Bari, Mohammad Brothers and Intikhab Alam Enclosure) have been fixed at Rs 1,000.
For matches to take place from Monday-Wednesday, cost of VIP stands (Hanif Mohammad and Javed Miandad Enclosures) have been fixed at Rs 3,000, while the price of the First-Class stands (Zaheer Abbas, Asif Iqbal, Waqar Hasan, Majid Khan, Iqbal Qasim and Nasimul Ghani Enclosures) have been kept at PKR2,000. Similarly, price of Premium stands (Quaid, Wasim Akram and Imran Khan Enclosure) have been set at Rs 1,000, while the General stand tickets (Wasim Bari, Mohammad Brothers and Intikhab Alam Enclosure) have been fixed at Rs 500.
For the first match in Lahore on March 10 involving Peshawar Zalmi and Karachi Kings, ticket prizes for the VIP stands (Imran Khan and Fazal Mahmood Enclosures) have been set for 3,000, followed by Rs 2,000 for the First-Class Stands (Abdul Qadir and Sarfraz Nawaz Enclosures), Rs 1,000 for Premium stands (A.H. Kardar, Rajas, Javed Miandad and Saeed Anwar Enclosures) and Rs 500 for General stands (Inzamam ul Haq, Nazars, Quaid, Imtiaz Ahmed, Zaheer Abbas, Hanif Mohammad, Majid Khan, Saeed Ahmed Enclosures).
Meanwhile, overseas players have started arriving in Karachi, where the first half of the tournament will take place. Karachi will host 20 matches from February 20 to March 7 while Lahore will host the remaining 14 matches from March 10 to 22.
