Pakistan Super League 2021 Covid New Updates - pslcricinfo

Pakistan Super League 2021 Covid New Updates 

Pakistan super league 2021 is a 16-team cricket league being formed under the chairmanship of Najam Sethi which will commence in October next year Imran Khan is likely to be appointed the league’s chairman. The league will last till May. The league is slated to feature Pakistan’s six top performing international players which also include Pakistani superstars Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Akhtar The league is going to feature three countries – Pakistan, India and Bangladesh and four teams will qualify for the finals. The league was announced by Najam Sethi a few weeks back. He said that the first season of the league will be played in Pakistan. The players will be allowed to choose between playing in Pakistan and elsewhere but will have to give a 30 percent share of the proceeds to their country. After the league, the league will be held in Pakistan for four years followed by one season in India. The final will be held in Pakistan in 2021. The league will be governed by the Pakistan Cricket Board. The league will be run by a managing committee headed by Ehsan Mani. The league is meant to counter the threat of Pakistan’s cricketers going to play in the lucrative Indian Premier League. This is a super league and not a league like that of India. The aim is to allow the Pakistan players to stay at home and play domestic cricket for Pakistan.

India is putting pressure on the Pakistan cricket board and the BCCI to adopt its international cricket structure. India wants to hold a league similar to the Indian Premier League while Pakistan wants the players to go to the IPL only as visiting players. India wants Pakistan players to play in the Indian Premier League by virtue of a super league. In the event that India and Pakistan don’t settle the conflict then the BCCI has promised that the IPL will not be affected. The super league will be played in two sessions – afternoon and evening. While the league will be played in Pakistan, New Zealand will play the second innings of the league at New Zealand. India, Australia, Bangladesh and England will play league matches and will be joined by Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and Australia. The four countries will play round robin matches with Pakistan playing alongside them. Australia, Pakistan, New Zealand, India and Bangladesh will play in the super league. Afghanistan will play in the league only as a super league team. Afghanistan is a developing country but is not yet an independent country. Hence, the country’s cricket board has asked the ICC to be allowed to play a super league.

League Details

Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Australia are facing each other in the first edition of the league. The league will have three super league matches including one final and three league matches. Read more: ICC rejects BCCI’s ‘super league’ proposal Signs of India’s intentions were witnessed last year during Pakistan’s match in India. India’s foreign office expressed concern and sought the ICC to prevent a repeat of last year’s incident. The super league was set up to provide opportunities to Pakistan’s top players in the event that they go to play the Indian Premier League. The league will provide huge financial incentives to the players to play in the league. While the compensation for the league is yet to be finalised, the players who play in the league will get 50 percent of the gate money which is around $400,000. The players will get $7,000 per match. In addition, each of the super league players will get two million rupees as a fee while they are allowed to earn another $3 million by endorsing brands. The league will have a host of overseas players. Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Australia are likely to play together. The super league will also include Pakistan’s overseas players like Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Sarfaraz Khan, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Aamir and Kamran Akmal. In addition to the super league, the ICC is set to adopt the league format for a few other nations, including Ireland and Afghanistan. The super league format for England has not yet been finalised. 

World League History 

The super league format will be an opportunity for players in the lower-tier countries to show their talent to be selected in the national team. Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Australia and New Zealand will play each other in round-robin matches. Pakistan will play three matches with Australia while India will play with Pakistan and New Zealand. Last year, the ICC had confirmed the format of the league after India raised objections. A joint news conference was held where the two sides discussed the issue. Sarfraz was reported as saying that Pakistan’s teams should play in a league instead of facing each other twice. A super league will also keep Indian players away from Pakistani stadiums. Read more: ICC won’t stage a bilateral tournament at home The super league will be played in both the evening and afternoon. However, New Zealand will play their league matches in the evening. The first league match will be held on March 20 and the second and third matches will be played on March 23 and 25. Sri Lanka, England, India and Australia will play league matches and will be joined by New Zealand and Pakistan. Pakistan will play New Zealand, Australia and India while New Zealand will play against India, Pakistan and England.

The league matches will start from March 26 and will be played in the evening. The league matches will end on April 2. The league matches will be played on a two day format. Sarfraz had said earlier that Pakistan needed the super league so that Indian players could not play against Pakistan. “If the super league takes place it will not be possible for India to play against us,” Sarfaraz said. Replying to a question, Sarfaraz said the league should have included Afghanistan, but he had not given his opinion about the proposed league.