Lahore Qalandars believe in giving chances to emerging players, says head coach

LAHORE: Lahore Qalandars’ Head Coach, Aqib Javed has said they believe in giving our emerging players chances and making them superstars.

“We are focused on our future stars Kamran Ghulam, Abdullah Shafique and Zaman Khan. When you give confidence to a young player, only then can realize his true potential,” Javed said in an interview. He spoke about his team’s journey, what turned around their fortunes and their chances in the upcoming edition.

It may be noted that the Lahore Qalandars had a stunning run in the last edition of the HBL Pakistan Super League, which culminated in the Shaheen Afridi-led team lifting the trophy. It was the first instance of the side winning the coveted HBL PSL title.

In the HBL-PSL-8, Lahore Qalandars begin their title defence on 13th February in Multan when they play the home side – Multan Sultans – at 2000.

He recalled that when he joined the franchise in the second edition, he faced the problem of forming a core as other teams had already picked the more skillful players in the domestic circuit. “We were subject to a lot of criticism in my first three years in charge but we realized our strength lay in developing players,” he said, adding: “When we appointed Sohail Akhtar as our captain in the HBL PSL 5, there was further backlash but he led us to the final.”

According to him, “If HBL-PSL did not exist, Pakistan cricket would have declined. Franchises invest in the best available players in the country and the competition is very tight in HBL-PSL. Credit is due to the HBL-PSL for the emergence and progression of Shaheen Afridi, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Babar Azam and Shadab Khan. A player is judged by his competitiveness and how well he handles the crowd pressure.”

To a question, he said the Lahore-Karachi rivalry is similar to Pakistan-India as the stadiums are jam-packed whenever these two sides take on each other. There is no added pressure on the contest but instead the players see it as an opportunity to perform and make their mark, he added.

On the other hand, Islamabad United have drafted in Rassie van der Dussen as a partial replacement for Moeen Ali, who will be unavailable until 14th March due to international commitments. Islamabad United had previously reserved their replacement pick for Moeen Ali in the Replacement Draft.

Karachi Kings have drafted in Adam Rossington as a partial replacement for James Vince, who will miss Karachi’s 7th, 8th and 9th game due to being part of England’s ODI squad for Bangladesh series.

Peshawar Zalmi have drafted in Peter Hatzoglou of Australia as a partial replacement for Mujeeb-ur-Rehman, who will be unavailable until 19 February due to international commitments. Peshawar Zalmi had previously reserved their replacement pick for Mujeeb in the Replacement Draft.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023