Lahore final a step in the right direction: Sammy

KARACHI: Darren Sammy was the biggest crowd favourite as Peshawar Zalmi cruised to victory in the HBL PSL final against Quetta Gladiators at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium on Sunday night.

And it wasn’t just the Zalmi captain’s cricketing heroics that made him the darling of the Lahori spectators.The West Indian star wore his heart on his sleeve as he shrugged aside security fears to enjoy the memorable atmosphere at the Gaddafi Stadium with his fellow players and the fans.

He later said that cricket was the winner as Pakistan hosted an incident-free PSL final despite huge security threats. It was the first major cricketing game in the country in many years. “To me it was more than just a game,” Sammy said after Zalmi’s emphatic 58-run win in the final. “It started with the draft. Lala (Shahid Afridi) made the big announcement that I would be the captain and one of our mottos was to bring back the smiles so I felt tonight I brought a lot of smiles in Lahore and Peshawar. It is an amazing day and this trophy means a lot,” added the West Indian star, who was one of four first-choice overseas players for Peshawar to make the trip to Lahore. His West Indies team-mate Marlon Samuels and England’s Chris Jordan and Dawid Malan were the other players who responded to Zalmi’s call and agreed to play in Pakistan.

The Federation of International Cricketers’ Association, in January, had warned that safety for the PSL final in Lahore could not be guaranteed and it wasn’t until 24 hours before the match that the foreign players taking part in it were confirmed.“When you have not been in a place you always have your doubts,” said Sammy, a two-time World T20-winning captain.

“You get different views, different opinions. But I spoke to Javed [Afridi, the Peshawar team owner] and Shahid Afridi and they influenced my decision to come here. All the boys just made the decision that we are part of something that we are coming down here for a good cause. The fans here deserve to see their players playing as they haven’t seen it for quite a while. I am glad I came here.

“I have enjoyed playing a cricket match [in Lahore] and I have even enjoyed being with the security guys as I have never seen something like this before so it was a good experience. It is hopefully a step in the right direction, where things could happen. What I can say is that being here felt like playing in St Lucia, playing in India or anywhere else in the world. And like I said at the toss, today I felt cricket was the winner.”