All six Pakistan Super League franchises have requested the Pakistan Cricket Board to move the remainder of the domestic season to the UAE. They sent out a letter to the cricket board after, and the request has come up after a fresh surge of COVID-19 cases in Pakistan.
Pakistan has seen about 4500 cases per day on average for the last seven days. It is at its peak since the first wave. The franchises sent out a letter to the board requesting the board to take action. It is understood that the PCB are considering the request and reviewing the ongoing plans. The plan is for all six franchises to assemble in Karachi by the 23rd of May. They will undergo a mandatory quarantine of seven days before training. The season will resume on the 1st of June.
The 2021 edition of the PSL commenced on the 20th of February earlier this year. After just 14 games across 12 days, it was called off due to the surge in COVID-19 cases in the team bio-bubbles. The new resumption date was finalized, and the replacement player draft took place a week ago as quite a few overseas players were unavailable for the league due to the new dates.
The league stages of the PSL 2021 resume on the 1st of June and will go on till the 14th. 16 league stage encounters are scheduled to be played. The three playoffs will take place on the 16th, 17th and 18th of June, respectively, before the final, which will be played on the 20th of June. All the games are scheduled to be played at the National Stadium in Karachi.
Moving the PSL to the UAE will bring its own logistical and operational issues. Very few competitive tournaments and cricket is played in the UAE in June due to the cruel heat and the prevailing conditions. Moreover, at the moment, flights to UAE from Pakistan are operating at a massively reduced frequency.
