LAHORE-Quetta Gladiators are one of the most successful franchises in the history of Pakistan Super League (PSL). They have been runner-up twice and were champion of the 2019 edition.
But their 2020 performances left their fans, coaches and players disappointed after they failed to qualify for the play-offs – a first time occurrence in five editions. However, despite not making it to the play-offs, Quetta still hold many an ace in their line-up starting with their head coach Moin Khan and captain Sarfaraz Ahmed.
South Africa star Faf du Plessis, who represented Peshawar Zalmi in the PSL 2020 play-offs last November, makes a return to the league as a partial replacement for Gayle, who is expected to be partially unavailable due to international commitments. The other key players to look out for are South Africa’s Cameron Delport and Australia’s all-rounder Ben Cutting. With Pakistan’s M Nawaz and Anwar Ali, Quetta have enough firepower for the final overs of an innings. Captain Sarfaraz can also use the long handle to good effect and has the ability to rotate strike.
Saim Ayub has earned quite a reputation for himself at U16 and U19 level for his big-hitting skills. Left-arm spinner Arish Khan is the other player to look out for as a bowler while Quetta’s pace attack gives a peek into Pakistan’s fast bowling stocks including M Hasnain, Naseem Shah and Usman Shinwari. They can learn a few tricks from veteran Dale Steyn. Among spinners, all-rounder Nawaz has able allies in leg-spinning duo of Qais Ahmad and Zahid Mahmood.
SQUAD: Sarfaraz Ahmed (capt), Abdul Nasir, Anwar Ali, Arish Ali Khan, Azam Khan, Ben Cutting, Cameron Delport, Chris Gayle, Dale Steyn, Faf du Plessis (replacement for Chris Gayle), M Hasnain, M Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Qais Ahmad, Saim Ayub, Tom Banton, Usman Khan, Usman Shinwari and Zahid Mahmood.