LAHORE: Finally, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has come into a position to make the much-awaited announcement that the remaining 20 matches of the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) will be played as per plan in Abu Dhabi in the month of June.

“Pakistan Cricket Board has confirmed it has received all outstanding approvals and exemptions from the United Arab Emirates government for staging of the remaining 20 HBL Pakistan Super League matches in Abu Dhabi,” the PCB stated in a press release issued on Thursday which was the last day to receive these approvals and exemptions, prior to which a postponement looked very much on the cards.

After getting the approvals and exemptions, every player and official of the PSL will be able to enter the UAE, following the Covid-19 SOPs. On the request of the PCB, the UAE government had assured the entry of Indians and South Africans’ nationals for the PSL because both the countries are included in the red-list due to a huge number of Covid-19 cases there.

Later, the PCB held an online meeting with the six franchise owners to finalise all details. The meeting was still in progress at the time of filing of this report.

It is learnt that all the franchises expressed their satisfaction and happiness over the resumption of the PSL in the meeting. The resumption, they believe, will boost Pakistan’s credibility for completing the suspended schedule of the league. As opposed to that, the BCCI is yet to make any announcement about resuming their cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL) which was suspended on May 4 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Moreover, the critics and experts believe that UAE may also be a favourable venue for the ICC to hold the next T20 World Cup in October this year since the pandemic situation is making it nearly impossible for India to stage the mega event.

The captains of all the franchises are also happy over the recent decision and are looking forward to the contests.

Meanwhile, it has alos been decided that all the incremental cost of shifting the PSL from Pakistan to UAE will be borne by the PCB.

The PCB and the franchises are still working on some issues related to the visa issuance to the foreign players and officials, especially from South Africans and India as they have to follow a 10-day quarantine period in Abu Dhabi. The new schedule of the league also have to be finalized and the fresh date for the start of the league’s remaining matches is likely to be June 5.

PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan said in a statement: “We are delighted with this development as the remaining hurdles in the staging of the remaining HBL PSL 6 matches in Abu Dhabi have been overcome and all systems are now good to go.

“We are grateful to the UAE government, National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority, Emirates Cricket Board and Abu Dhabi Sports Council for their support and patronage in ensuring all final obstacles were removed, which has firmly put us in a position to complete our marquee event.

“The PCB, in consultation with the team owners, will now work at pace to finalise all event-related arrangements, details of which will be shared in due course. I take this opportunity to thank my staff for their untiring efforts and hard work that included sacrificing their Eid-ul-Fitr holidays in an effort to ensure the PCB honours its commitment to its fans to hold the remaining matches of the tournament in June.

At present, defending champions Karachi Kings top the points table with six points from five matches (three wins, two defeats). Interestingly, all top four sides, Kings, Peshawar Zalmi, Islamabad United and Lahore Qalandars accumulated six points in the Karachi-leg, with Kings taking the top-spot due to their better net run-rate.

The 2017 champions Peshawar Zalmi occupy the second-spot with as many points, wins and defeats as the Kings but an inferior net run-rate of 0.273 compared to Kings’ 0.697. Islamabad United, the 2016 and 2018 champions, occupy the third-spot. They recorded three wins in four matches they played in Karachi, their net run-rate is 0.202.

Lahore Qalandars, the HBL PSL 2020 finalists, are in the fourth-spot with three wins and a defeat from their four matches with six points and a net run-rate of 0.085. Multan Sultans are languishing in the fifth-spot with two points from five matches (one win, four defeats) and a net run-rate of -0.244 while the 2019 champions Quetta Gladiators are bottom-placed with a win and four defeats in five matches and a net run-rate of -0.936.

Karachi Kings captain Imad Wasim said: “The restart is great news for both the players and especially the fans. We were at the top of the points table in Karachi and would like to be able to sustain the run of form in Abu Dhabi too.”

Peshawar Zalmi captain Wahab Riaz said: “We are really excited about the resumption of the HBL Pakistan Super League 6. Like the rest of the sides, we also have changes in the squad in terms of our foreign players.”

Islamabad United captain Shadab Khan said: “In the prevailing pandemic challenges, the return of the HBL PSL 6 is a massive boost for all of us. We have great memories of playing in the UAE, United of course won its first title there in 2016. The 2017 season proved to be a life changing one for me there, now four years later, I am really looking forward to leading my side in Abu Dhabi. We had an excellent run in Karachi and I am confident that the team will do equally well in Abu Dhabi.”

Lahore Qalandars captain Sohail Akhtar said: “The Karachi leg was incredibly competitive and despite our fourth-spot we are joint on points with the three teams ahead of us. This means that we have a real shot at one of the four play-off berths and that is really exciting.”

Multan Sultans captain Mohammad Rizwan said: “We had a tough run in Karachi, but we have the depth and pedigree in our squad to turn the tables around when we resume the action in the UAE. We would need to hit the ground running and produce the wins straight away to stay in contention for a play-offs spot and that is a challenge that will motivate both me and my squad.”

Quetta Gladiators captain Sarfaraz Ahmed said: “The Karachi-leg was a challenging one for us as a team but we took a significant step in the last match before the suspension by becoming the first side to successfully defend a target in the HBL Pakistan Super League 6. The last result is a positive that we will carry with us in Abu Dhabi, UAE has been a great venue for us as we have done outstandingly well there in the past.”

Published in Dawn, May 21st, 2021