Hammad Shakil
Anwar Ali jumps on the edge of the 30-yard circle, Shane Watson takes guard, Sharjeel Khan hits his bat at the non-strikers’ end, Sarfraz Ahmad sets the field, purely orthodox field, with a slip in place and third man and fine leg waiting for an upper cut or hook to swallow. Joel Wilson says “Yes” as Anwar Ali pumps in and bowls a length delivery half-blocked by Shane Watson. It is simple, is it really? PSL starts. It takes off, kicks off in a rather unfussy way. But for Pakistani fans, it’s something more than a half-blocked shot.
PSL, or HBL PSL what they call it for sponsorship reasons, had a bombastic ceremony to get launched amidst several cricket and entertainment stars. It was so scintillating that you can add any amount of adjectives to it! The fireworks were awesome, lighting more than awesome. And to spice up the moments, the ceremony was hosted by one of the most discussed characters of Pakistani films of 2015, Yasir Hussain aka Moti from ‘Karachi Se Lahore’. The star of the show was of course the ‘Shooting Star’, the PSL trophy which had its own arrival literally from the night sky. The captains of the five franchises came in Limos with their respective team owners and coaches. And then came the Jamaican dancehall super star Sean Paul later joined at the stage by his country mates Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo and Darren Sammy who overshadowed everything else that had happened so far. “Ab Khel Ke Dikha” (Show Me How You Play) the official anthem was performed by none other than the Pakistani rockstar, Ali Zafar. Everything was jaw-droppingly brilliant. Pakistan had never seen such a grand opening for a local event!
The first match of HBL PSL saw it all. It had every Pakistani thing in it. Islamabad United geared up against the underdogs Quetta Gladiators. ISLU were put into bat first after losing the toss. The openers failed, middle order struggled, dot balls came, boundaries seemed longer than the Indo-Pak border, and late order hovered around the man who had seen such crisis in his life more than anyone on the planet, Misbah ul Haq, or what Alan Wilkins named him, Misbah Crisis ul Haq. Bowlers bowled their hearts out, spinners came into play, catches being put down. It was a typical Pakistani start. It was, after all, Pakistan Super League! It was a dream come true the seeds of which were sown almost eight years ago. And most importantly, it’s just not the brand of PCB, it’s the brand of Pakistan, as stated by Shoaib Akhtar.
The Sarfraz-Anwar duo brought fantastic memories to everyone’s minds. Sarfraz the captain had led Pak to an U19 WC victory back in 2006 dismantling Ind in the final with Anwar Ali being the main weapon. The contest now was the veteran Misbah vs one of the frontrunners for captaincy in future, Sarfraz Ahmad. The veteran collapsed, the novice elapsed. Cricket won, fears lost.
Now it is quite clear PCB have flushed money like any other super league in the world, but will they be able to garner it back? Will PSL prove to be a financially strong industry for PCB? Will it try to hold the financially sinking PCB up when there is no international cricket in Pakistan? Considering PSL to be organized in a rather neutral venue for all the agencies involved, PCB will be quite happy if they do get at least the money they have spent back, not to discuss the profits right now. The only profit they would, rather should be having in their minds will be a 1.00 profit-loss ratio, as well as unearthing of some raw talent. Even if it is financially a setback, the unearthing of a new talent will be enough to neutralize the loss, and come the next 2 years or so, it will surely be viewed as one of the finest leagues of the world, as suggested by the grand opening ceremony!
Adieus…!!
Comments
Post a Comment