Pakistan postpones PSL T20 cricket amid clashes with India

Pakistan postpones its Twenty20 league indefinitely, scrapping UAE relocation plan, arsenic hostility with India escalates.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has postponed its Pakistan Super League T20 cricket tourney pursuing rising subject tensions betwixt India and Pakistan.

The PCB said it acted connected proposal from Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

“Cricket, portion being a unifying unit and a root of joy, indispensable instrumentality a respectful pause,” the PCB said successful a connection connected Friday evening.

The PCB had earlier confirmed that it would relocate the 8 remaining PSL matches to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, citing increasing concerns among overseas players and the request to prioritise their safety.

The latest announcement, however, said the PSL was being postponed and gave nary denotation of whether this year’s variation would resume.

The cities of Rawalpindi, Multan and Lahore had been scheduled to big the remaining PSL games.

On Thursday, an Indian drone fell wrong the analyzable of the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium hours earlier the commencement of a PSL crippled successful which respective cricketers from New Zealand, Australia, the West Indies, South Africa and England were owed to compete.

Residents stitchery extracurricular the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium aft a drone strike, allegedly by India, connected Thursday [Sohail Shahzad/EPA]

PCB president Mohsin Naqvi, who is besides the interior curate successful the Pakistan government, held meetings with overseas cricketers and six franchise owners of the PSL earlier initially saying the tourney was being moved to Dubai.

England cricketer Sam Billings, New Zealand’s Colin Munro, South African Rilee Rossouw and Jason Holder of the West Indies were among 43 overseas cricketers competing successful the PSL.

“We person sincere respect for the intelligence well-being of participating players and the sentiments of our overseas players, and we respect the concerns of their families who privation to spot them backmost home,” the PCB connection said.

The PSL, successful its 10th edition, started successful the UAE successful 2016. The UAE hosted the archetypal 2 editions of the PSL, but for the last successful 2017, and besides immoderate of the games successful 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Munro’s Islamabad United are the defending champions successful the six-team league. Rossouw’s Quetta Gladiators pb the points array and person already qualified for the playoff signifier portion Multan Sultans, led by Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan, were eliminated aft losing 8 of their 9 league games.

The 3 different teams are Peshawar Zalmi, captained by Babar Azam; Karachi Kings, skippered by Australian David Warner and Lahore Qalandars.

The Indian Premier League was suspended for a week, the Board of Control for Cricket successful India said connected Friday, successful a akin determination amid the existent tensions successful the region.

Source

:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies