PSL-3 rolls into action tomorrow

LAHORE: The third edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL-3) is all set to blast into action from February 22 (Thursday) at Dubai International Stadium.

The opening ceremony of our own league will have a live concert in which national as well as international singers will perform followed by a spectacular display of fireworks to enthrall audience.

The artists scheduled to perform include Abida Parveen, Ali Zafar, Shehzad Roy and Jason Derulo. Looking at it in a patriotic perspective, this league has no winner or a loser, the only winner is Pakistan. The country has gone through unprecedented upheavals and thorny terrains to reach to the level the game of cricket, which is an obsession in this part of the region, has crawled to after having adopted other’s war on terror.

The ceremony would be followed by the opening match of the tournament between defending champions Peshawar Zalmi and newcomers Multan Sultans at 10.00 pm PST.

The excitement, drama and anticipation cannot be more higher than the fact that everyone who has ever laid his hand on the cricket bat is waiting anxiously for the extravaganza to kick off.The opening ceremony for the tournament will be held on February 22, ahead of the first match between Peshawar Zalmi and debutants Multan Sultans.

The defenders of the 2017 edition of PSL will be heading to the tournament to win the trophy for the second time in a row. The side has experienced campaigners in all the three departments of the game.

Multan Sultans, on the other hand, are led by a veteran management with the likes of Shoaib Malik – who led Pakistan into the first ever ICC World Twenty20 final in 2007 – serving as captain and Wasim Akram – who was the mentor of Islamabad United, when the franchise won the first edition back in 2016. With a powerful lineup, let’s see what the team has to offer in their first ever campaign.

Squads: Peshawar Zalmi: Darren Sammy (captain), Evin Lewis, Tamim Iqbal, Mohammad Arif, Khushdil Shah, Taimur Sultan, Ibtisam Sheikh, Mohammad Hafeez, Shakib Al Hasan, Haris Sohail, Dwayne Bravo, Hammad Azam, Saad Nasim, Khalid Usman, Kamran Akmal, Andre Fletcher, Hasan Ali, Chris Jordan, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Asghar, Sameen Gul.

Multan Sultans: Shoaib Malik (captain), Ahmed Shehzad, Sohaib Maqsood, Abdullah Shafiq, Darren Bravo, Saif Badar, Umar Siddiq, Shan Masood, Sohail Tanvir, Kieron Pollard, Kashif Bhatti, Ross Whiteley, Kumar Sangakkara, Nicholas Pooran, Umar Gul, Mohammad Irfan, Junaid Khan, Imran Tahir, Irfan Khan, Mohammad Abbas, Hardus Viljoen.