Bad news for Qatar: U-turn by PCB can see PSL being held in UAE

Officials enter final phase of negotiations hours before the event’s launch in Lahore

KARACHI:

In a dramatic turn of events, the Pakistan Super League (PSL) could return to the UAE, less than a month after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had announced that it would be held in Qatar.

The official announcement for the change in venue is expected to be made on Sunday at the PSL launch event in Lahore.

The PCB had wanted to host the event in the UAE as it best suited their interests and given Pakistan’s alliance with the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), which has provided the ‘home ground’ to Pakistan for the last seven years, the choice seemed rational.

However, the ECB did not take the PCB in confidence and booked the grounds for a low-profile Masters Cricket League (MCL), scheduled to be held during the same dates as the PSL.

The move did not go down well with the PCB, who decided to move the PSL in Qatar, which was ready to take up the opportunity since it wants to compete with UAE as the major powerhouse for sports in the Gulf region.

The ECB then decided to re-enter negotiations with the PCB and the MCL organisers so that both tournaments could be accommodated.

“Negotiations are still going on with the ECB and there is a strong possibility that the PSL could still be staged in the UAE,” a senior PCB official told The Express Tribune. “The PSL governing council is keeping its options open because it wants the event to be a success. The Qatari authorities have been very welcoming to take Pakistan cricket on board.”

If the PSL does return to the UAE, it would boost the project as UAE remains the best option with international cricket not likely to return to Pakistan in the near future.

PSL Governing Council Chairman Najam Sethi had  signed Wasim Akram and Ramiz Raja as the ambassadors of the T20 league, inflicting a blow on the MCL organisers who were initially backed by the two cricket icons.

Meanwhile, the official also spoke about adding names like Kumar Sangakkara, Kevin Pietersen, Brendon McCullum and Alastair Cook to the PSL before the event launch.

The players who have since agreed to play in PSL include West Indian players Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Sunile Narine, Samuel Badree, Dwayne Bravo, Lendl Simmons, Dinesh Ramdin, Jason Holder and Andre Russell. England’s Chris Jordan, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Owais Shah, Luke Wright and Jade Dernbech. Sri Lankans Angelo Mathews, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Lasith Malinga, Thishara Perrera, Ajantha Mendis, New Zealand’s James Franklin, Grant Elliot, Jesse Ryder, South African Johan Botha, Bangladesh’s Shakib al Hasan and Australia’s Brad Hodge.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 20^th, 2015.

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