The excitement is palpable as the opening edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) is closer than ever. With only three days to go all five franchises have started their build up through practice and bonding sessions with their national and international recruits.
The Peshawar Zalmi outfit that arrived in Dubai in the wee hours of Monday spent a busy day with the team welcoming the English trio of batting consultant Andy Flower, batsman Dwaid Malan and all-rounder Jim Allenbye in their ranks.
After a hearty breakfast at the plush Conrad Hotel, the team gathered for an introduction with the foreign players before departing for a light training session at the ICC Dubai Cricket Academy.
Head coach Mohammad Akram gave a pep talk to his troops underlining the importance of representing a franchise that has endeavored to bring back smiles to its trouble people. Flower also spoke about the importance of building the right team spirit and cultivating a culture of all for one, one for all philosophy.
During the drills a hugely competitive football match was also played between the players who were divided into two teams in a short game aimed at developing a better understanding between the squad members.
In a media interaction the wicket-keeper batsman Kamran Akmal spoke confidently about his team’s chances in the five team tournament. The experienced Lahore batsman who played a pivotal role in Pakistan’s 2009 World T20 triumph in England feels that his team has the right blend of youth and experience that can help them prevail over their rivals.
“Our team has a great deal of experience and quality, we have three days to build up for the tournament, we will utilize this time to develop a better understanding of our squad and our strengths.”
Akmal added that there were some super stars in the team especially the captain Shahid Afridi was a champion match winner.
“Shahid has been a fine leader and for me the superstar of the PSL and perhaps the best among the icon players, I really hope that he has a good tournament. “
After the training session the players refreshed in their rooms for a short while, later they were driven to a dinner hosted by their team owner Javed Afridi.
In a hospitable reception Afridi warmly welcomed his squad members, Shahid who arrived in the city in the afternoon also gelled well with the players as the air was filled with laughter with the players enjoying a nice Dubai winter evening in the Jumeriah arena.
The food served encompassed the traditional Pathan culture and was thoroughly enjoyed by both the local and international players’ part of the Zalmi outfit.
The players have a grueling net practice and training session lined up for Tuesday. The set of players is likely to be further strengthened with the expected arrival of more international recruits like Tamim Iqbal, Shaun Tait and Darren Sammy.
