Pakistan Super League 2020
Fifth time’s the charm, I guess. because that’s how many tries it took for the Pakistan Super League (PSL) to finally come to Pakistan in all its glory. I know, I know, technically that’s not true as the first time PSL came to Pakistan was in 2017, but that was only the final being played here. Furthermore, most of the international players chose not to come play either, so…
But let me backtrack a little for all you that don’t know what I’m talking about: The Pakistan Super League was first thought of in the year 2015. It was a T20 format tournament for cricket; not the first one out there, as many others already exist. It consisted of 5 teams initially, with the 6th team added in 2019, and was played in Dubai for most of the part. The teams are:
- Islamabad United
- Karachi Kings
- Lahore Qalandars
- Quetta Gladiators
- Multan Sultans
- Peshawar Zalmi
It all changed in 2020, though, as the safety situation in Pakistan began to become better. Not only this, but in 2019, Pakistan hosted team Bangladesh and before that, Team Zimbabwe for cricket. Both of these events helped PCB in taking the initiative of bringing the PSL to be played in Pakistan, from start to end.
Up onto this moment, the most successful team has been Islamabad United, as they have won 2 out of the previous 4 installments. The other two wins of the tournament have been shared between Peshawar Zalmi and Quetta Gladiators.
The PSL is graced by the participation of some of the biggest stars out there when it comes to the world of Cricket. Stars like Shane Watson, Shadab Khan, Wahab Riaz, Luke Ronchi, Ben Cutting and Dale Steyn battle it out on the lush green cricket grounds across Pakistan. The beauty of a tournament like this and of this magnitude is that on one hand, it brings friends out to play against each other, while on the other, former foes and rivals to play together. And many saw that action live, as cricket fans flooded the stadiums in Karachi, Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi for this year’s edition of PSL.
While both semifinals of the tournament had to be canceled due to the outbreak of Coronavirus, CEO Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is confident that those matches can be staged later on this year, in two small windows whose feasibility is currently being discussed.
