PSL 2020 matches will be played

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has made it clear the remaining Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2020 matches will be played in November and refuted reports that PSL will not be completed.

An official of the PCB said the matches will be played even if foreign players could not take part in the final stage. There were reports that one of the PSL franchises created confusion by claiming that the circumstances created by the COVID-19 pandemic had made it almost impossible to stage the four remaining matches.

It was also speculated that table toppers Multan Sultans would be crowned the winners of the PSL 2020. But Ali Tareen, co-owner of Multan, also made it clear that awarding the title without holding remaining matches would be injustice with the teams as well as the fans.

It is pertinent to mention that PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani, in last month’s PSL governing council meeting, assured franchise owners that the tournament will be concluded in November. Ali Tareen said that if the remaining matches were not staged and his own franchise were to benefit from the situation, it would be a “huge injustice”.

The Sultans, by virtue of their top position in the league stage, have the best claim to the PSL 2020 trophy. However, Tareen is not a fan of the idea of being crowned champions of an incomplete tournament as he urged that the event must be finished, with local players if the foreign stars cannot be gathered.

“This would be a huge injustice against the teams who have qualified. Especially Lahore Qalandars who qualified after so long and had a genuine shot of winning,” he tweeted.