PCB announces PSL 7 schedule, draft date

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Friday the schedule and draft date of the seventh edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), with matches to be played in Karachi and Lahore.

The tournament will convene on January 27 with defending champions Multan Sultans taking on Karachi Kings in the opening game at Karachi’s National Stadium. Quetta Gladiators and Peshawar Zalmi will face off in the second match of the tournament on January 28.

In the first of the six double-headers to be played in the 32-day and 34-match tournament, Multan Sultans will take on 2020 runners-up Lahore Qalandars at 2 pm PKT, which will be followed by the Karachi Kings and Quetta Gladiators’ fixture that will begin at 7 pm PKT on Saturday.

Islamabad United appoint Azhar Mahmood as head coach for PSL 7

Two-time champions Islamabad will be in action on Sunday afternoon when they lock horns with Peshawar Zalmi, with the evening match to be played between arch-rivals Karachi Kings and Lahore Qalandars.

After Karachi, which will host 15 matches from 27 January to 7 February, action will shift to Lahore, where the remaining 15 league matches and the four play-offs will be played from 10 to 27 February.

The 27 February final will be the first time since 2017 when the headquarters of Pakistan cricket will hold the final. National Stadium had staged the finals from 2018 to 2020, while Abu Dhabi was the venue for the 2021 final where Sultans defeated Zalmi by 47 runs.

The PCB has designed the 2022 tournament in such a way that each side will play an equal number of matches in Karachi and Lahore, as well as games under natural and artificial lights.

Babar Azam to lead Karachi Kings in PSL 7

HBL PSL Draft 2022

The PCB has decided that the HBL PSL Draft 2022 will be held at the High-Performance Centre in Lahore on Sunday, 12 December, with the event kicking off at 3 pm.

Each side will come to the draft with a maximum of eight-player retentions from the last event. Following the finalisation of player categories, the transfer and retention window is now officially open and will close on 10 December.

In the Platinum Category, Lahore Qalandars will have the first pick, followed by Multan Sultans, Karachi Kings, Islamabad United, Peshawar Zalmi, and Quetta Gladiators. Lahore Qalandars will have the first pick in the Diamond Category, followed by Peshawar Zalmi, Islamabad United, Quetta Gladiators, Karachi Kings, and Multan Sultans.

Lahore Qalandars will have the first pick in the Gold Category, Peshawar Zalmi will have the first pick in the Silver Category, Lahore Qalandars will have the first pick in Emerging Category and Quetta Gladiators will have the first pick in Supplementary Category.

PSL 7 Schedule

27 Jan - Karachi Kings vs Multan Sultans

28 Jan - Quetta Gladiators vs Peshawar Zalmi

29 Jan - Multan Sultans vs Lahore Qalandars; Karachi Kings vs Quetta Gladiators

30 Jan - Peshawar Zalmi vs Islamabad United; Karachi Kings vs Lahore Qalandars

31 Jan - Quetta Gladiators vs Multan Sultans

1 Feb - Islamabad United vs Multan Sultans

2 Feb - Peshawar Zalmi vs Lahore Qalandars

3 Feb - Quetta Gladiators vs Islamabad United

4 Feb - Karachi Kings vs Peshawar Zalmi

5 Feb - Islamabad United vs Lahore Qalandars; Peshawar Zalmi vs Multan Sultans

6 Feb - Karachi Kings vs Islamabad United

7 Feb - Quetta Gladiators vs Lahore Qalandars

10 Feb- Multan Sultans vs Peshawar Zalmi

11 Feb - Lahore Qalandars vs Multan Sultans

12 Feb - Islamabad United vs Quetta Gladiators

13 Feb - Peshawar Zalmi vs Karachi Kings; Lahore Qalandars vs Quetta Gladiators

14 Feb - Islamabad United vs Karachi Kings

15 Feb - Peshawar Zalmi vs Quetta Gladiators

16 Feb - Multan Sultans vs Karachi Kings

17 Feb - Islamabad United vs Peshawar Zalmi

18 Feb - Multan Sultans vs Quetta Gladiators; Lahore Qalandars vs Karachi Kings

19 Feb - Lahore Qalandars vs Islamabad United

20 Feb - Quetta Gladiators vs Karachi Kings; Multan Sultans vs Islamabad United

21 Feb - Lahore Qalandars vs Peshawar Zalmi

23 Feb - Qualifier (1 vs 2)

24 Feb - Eliminator 1 (3 vs 4)

25 Feb - Eliminator 2 (Loser Qualifier 1 vs Winner Eliminator 1)

27 Feb – (Qualifier v Eliminator 2) Final

Match timings:

All double-headers will be played at 2 and 7 pm while matches on Fridays will be played at 3 and 8 pm. Similarly, all single headers will start at 7 pm.