Pakistan Super League(PSL) Schedule - 22 Feb 2020

Pakistan Super League(PSL) Schedule - 22 Feb 2020

Pakistan Super League

1st Match

Quetta Gladiators vs Peshawar Zalmi

2nd Match

Islamabad United vs Multan Sultans

Pakistan Super League is a professional Twenty20 cricket league, founded in Lahore on 9 September 2015 with five teams and now comprises six teams. Instead of operating as an association of independently owned teams, the league is a single entity in which each franchise is owned and controlled by investors

The commercial rights to the initial franchises were sold for US$93 million for a span of 10 years in December 2015. The market value of PSL in 2017 was up to US$300 million, according to Arif Habib.

The PSL season runs between the months of February and March, with each team playing matches in double round robin format; the top four teams with the best record qualify for the playoffs and culminates in the championship game, the PSL Cup Final. The league is directed out of the Pakistan Cricket Board head office in Lahore. 

Due to security reasons, the first season was played entirely in the United Arab Emirates. The inaugural champions were Islamabad United. Peshawar Zalmi were the 2017 PSL Champions, having defeated Quetta Gladiators in Lahore on 5 March 2017. Islamabad United were the 2018 PSL champions, beating Peshawar Zalmi on 25 March 2018. 

The current champions are Quetta Gladiators, who won the title on 17 March 2019 in Karachi.

In September 2015, the PCB officially announced the launch of the PSL. Former Pakistani national team captains Wasim Akram and Rameez Raja signed up to promote the PSL and become brand ambassadors of the league for three years.

After several years of planning and two previous failed attempts, the league officially began on 4 February 2016 in the United Arab Emirates where Bakhtawar Bhutto-Zardari, alongside Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, inaugurated the opening ceremony. 

The first two seasons included five teams nominally based in Pakistani cities. In its first season the PSL had a higher percentage of international players. The league uses a draft system for player recruitment similar to that used in many North American professional sports leagues and as opposed to the auction system used in some other T20 leagues.

The PSL's official logo was launched on 20 September 2015 in a ceremony in Lahore, and was revealed by 3Di. The ceremony was attended by current and retired cricketers, as well as Pakistani celebrities.

According to a PCB press release, around 20 parties showed an interest in buying franchises for the league before the first season. On 18 October 2015 the Pakistan Cricket Board began accepting tenders for franchises with a deadline for bids of 15 November.

According to a statement by the PCB, bid winners would be granted the rights to a franchise for a term of ten years. Interested parties included the ARY Group, Omar Associates, Arif Habib Group, Haier, Mobilink as well as international groups including Leonine Global Sports and the Qatar Lubricants Company (QALCO).

All five franchises for the first season of the league were sold on 3 December 2015, for a total price of US$93 million, after seven bidders presented formal proposals.

PSL Map of Participating Nations

In April 2017, PCB invited bids for the sixth team and the deadline set for the submission of both the financial and technical proposals was 30 May and as many as 40 national and international parties expressed an interest in buying the sixth franchise.

On 1 June 2017, from five regions short-listed by PCB Multan was bought by Schön Properties for a price of US$5.2 million per year becoming the most expensive team of the PSL. However, on 12 November 2018, its rights were terminated by PCB due to payment issues. PCB invited bids and resold the "6th team" to Ali Tareen consortium after successful bid with US$6.35 million for 7 years on 20 December 2018.