LAHORE - Punjab will take on Sindh in the inaugural match of the four-day SAGA Premier League (SPL) which will commence from today (Tuesday) here at the Gaddafi Stadium.
The second match of the day will be contested between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Baluchistan at the same venue. The tournament will explode into action today (Tuesday) with a colorful opening ceremony which was graced by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and SAGA officials while PCB governing board member Shamsa Hashmi and SAGA chairperson Mrs. Farzana Saif will be chief guests at the occasion.
Speaking at the press conference held here at a local hotel on Monday, SAGA vice president Ms Haleema Munir, flanked by NCA Director Game Development Aizad Hussaid Syed, PCB women wing general manager Shamsa Hashmi and captains of four participating teams, said: “We had also invited international players to play the league alongside local players but due to some reasons, they couldn’t reach the country to play the league but in the next SPL edition, we will ensure that top foreign players may become part of this league or we will organise it in Qatar to make sure maximum international players’ participation in the league as it will not only make the event more competitive but also provide our local players international exposure.”
Speaking at the occasion, Aizad Syed termed the event a healthy one for the promotion of women cricket and hoped it would provide young and promising talent chances to excel at higher level. “There is a dire need to promote women cricket which needs sponsors like SAGA Premier League which are committed to their significant cause. The more the sponsors invest in women cricket, the better women cricket will be and flourish rapidly.”
PCB GM women wing Shamsa Hashmi informed the media about the league’s schedule adding two matches would be played daily. “In all, six matches will be played during the entire league while the seventh one will be the final which will be contested among the top two teams.
“With top national cricketers are participating in the tournament, I am expecting healthy and competitive cricket and those talented players, who will excel in the league, will surely get chance at the higher level,” Shamsa concluded.
The four participating teams are SAGA Punjab, SAGA Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, SAGA Sindh and SAGA Balochistan.