Pakistan’s best T20 cricketers are back in action as the much-awaited National T20 Cup First XI tournament kicks off today at the Multan Cricket Stadium. This event will pave the way for the future as the structure of domestic cricket in the country changes.
Pakistan’s domestic cricket structure took a major hit when Prime Minister Imran Khan rejected the reinstatement of departmental cricket in the domestic season 2020-21. However, we should hope for the best.
The National T20 Cup is going to be a thriller tournament for the cricket fans. Six regional teams are participating in the event, including teams from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Northern, Central Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan and South Punjab.
If we look at this event in the context of the future, the captains of all these teams, excluding Sindh, are young, which is a welcome thing for the national team. However, experts believe that the captain alone cannot do anything unless the team is with him.
As far as Sarfraz Ahmed is concerned, everyone knows his performance. Under Sarfraz Ahmed’s leadership, Pakistan won the Champions Trophy in 2017 and got the first position in T20.
Sindh team could get benefit from the explosive batsman Sharjeel Khan and the experienced Asad Shafiq. Meanwhile, its bowling is also in safe hands, which includes Sohail Khan, pacer Mohammad Hasnain and Mir Hamza.
As for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa team, it is led by the current wicketkeeper of the national cricket team, Mohammad Rizwan. The KP team can easily beat any competing team due to its experienced players. The players include Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Hafeez, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Wahab Riaz, and Usman Khan Shinwari. From a realistic point of view, no sane person would think that this team could not reach the final.
Looking at the Central Punjab team, batsmen like Abid Ali and Kamran Akmal are also part of the team led by prolific batsman Babar Azam. Naseem Shah, Ehsan Adil, and others are representing the team in fast bowlers. The bowling team seems to be relatively weak.
Speaking of defending champions Northern, the team is led by young all-rounder Imad Wasim. The team includes Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Nawaz, and Sohail Tanveer. It is not difficult to say that this team could not defend its title.
On the other hand, Haris Sohail is leading the Balochistan side. Owais Zia, Imam-ul-Haq, Imran Farhat are part of the batting line and include bowlers like Emad Butt, Yasir Shah, Umar Gul, Ameed Asif, and Akif Javed. There are few players in the current national team, but all these players can win the trophy by demonstrating their skills.
In the end, the South Punjab team is led by national team opener Shaun Masood. Zeeshan Ashraf, Sohaib Maqsood, Ali Shafiq, Khushdal Shah, Hussain Talat, Amir Yameen, Bilawal Bhatti, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ilyas, and Mohammad Irfan. If you look at the players of this team, you will find a long list of players who have the ability to win matches for their team.
The captains of these six teams are full of talent on their own and can turn the match around with their leadership skills and most importantly, how to use ‘Final Eleven’. But it remains to be seen how all these teams and their captains play on the field.
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