KARACHI: Pakistan’s biggest cricketing event kicked off on Saturday with music and fireworks in Karachi after the edition was suspended last year following the coronavirus outbreak.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a statement prior to the opening ceremony that it would allow 20 percent of stadium capacity during games — 7,500 fans in Karachi and 5,500 fans in Lahore — to cheer on their favorite T20 teams for a month of cricket played in two cities.
Last year, four matches were played in empty stadiums before the league’s suspension.
Performances by pop stars Atif Aslam, Imran Khan, Humaima Malick and PSL 6 anthem artists, Naseebo Lal, Aima Baig and Young Stunners marked the launch of the sixth edition of the annual cricketing competition at the national stadium in Karachi. They were, however, played on screens as artists did not perform live due to coronavirus health guidelines.
“Pakistan has opened the doors to the rest of the world and PSL was proud to lead this resurgence of international cricket,” PCB chairman Ehsan Mani during the ceremony.
“The best team will lift the trophy on March 22,” Mani said, as he thanked overseas players who arrived in Pakistan to take part in PSL matches.
The opening ceremony was followed by the first match of the season in which defending champions Karachi Kings are playing against Quetta Gladiators.
The first 20 matches will be played in the national stadium Karachi between Feb. 20 and March 7. The teams will then depart for Lahore to play the remaining 10 league matches and four playoffs.
The tournament will conclude with a final match at Lahore’s Qaddafi stadium on March 22.
Pakistan Super League launches with star-studded ceremony, first playoff today
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Pakistan Super League launches with star-studded ceremony, first playoff today
- PSL opening ceremony featured Atif Aslam, Imran Khan, Humaima Malick, Naseebo Lal, Aima Baig and Young Stunners
- In first match, defending champions Karachi Kings take on the Quetta Gladiators
US senator urges military action if Hamas, Hezbollah remained armed
- Graham’s remarks came a day after mediators urged Hamas and Israel to uphold Gaza ceasefire
- The 2nd phase of the Gaza truce envisages the demilitarization of the territory, including the disarmament of Hamas
JERUSALEM: US Senator Lindsey Graham called on Sunday for renewed military action against Hamas and Hezbollah if they fail to disarm and accused the Palestinian Islamist group of consolidating its power in Gaza.
The Republican politician, on a visit to Israel, is a staunch ally of US President Donald Trump.
Beginning in October, a fragile ceasefire has so far halted two years of war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip despite both sides trading accusations of truce violations.
A separate ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah also came into effect in November 2024 after more than a year of hostilities, though Israel continues to carry out strikes on Lebanese territory.
Israel has made dismantling the arsenals of both groups, allies of its arch-foe Iran, a key condition for any lasting peace.
“It’s imperative we come up with a plan quickly, put Hamas on a time clock, give them a period of time to achieve the goal of disarmament,” Graham said at a press conference during his visit.
“And if you don’t, I would encourage President Trump to unleash Israel to go finish off Hamas.”
“It’s a long, brutal war, but you cannot be successful anywhere in the region until you deliver in dealing Hamas out of the future of Gaza and disarming them,” Graham added, insisting that the second stage of the truce would fail if Hamas remains armed.
“Ninety days after the ceasefire, they are consolidating power in Gaza,” Graham said.
He also called for military engagement against Hezbollah if it too does not surrender its weapons.
“If Hezbollah refuses to give up their heavy weapons, down the road we should engage in military operations working with Lebanon, Israel and the United States, where we fly with Israel... to take Hezbollah out,” Graham said.
-- Opposition to Turkiye --
The Lebanese government has begun to disarm Hezbollah, starting in the country’s south, and insists it will complete the plan.
Israel, however, has questioned the effectiveness of the Lebanese military, and Hezbollah itself has repeatedly refused to lay down its weapons.
Graham’s remarks came a day after mediators the United States, Qatar, Egypt and Turkiye urged both sides in the Gaza war to uphold the ceasefire.
The mediators are pressing for the implementation of the second phase of the truce, which would involve an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the deployment of an international stabilization force and the establishment of an interim authority to govern the territory in place of Hamas.
The second phase of the Gaza truce also envisages the demilitarization of the territory, including the disarmament of Hamas.
Graham backed Israel’s opposition to Turkiye being included in the stabilization force, saying it would “rock Israel to its core.”
“There is no political support anywhere in Israel for having Turkiye being involved in the stabilising force,” he said.
Hamas, meanwhile, has called on the mediators and Washington to stop Israeli “violations” of the ceasefire in Gaza.
On Sunday, Israeli artillery shelling was reported in several parts of Gaza’s southern area of Khan Yunis, according to the civil defense agency, which operates under the authority of Hamas.
On Friday, six people, including two children, were killed in an Israeli bombing of a school serving as a shelter for displaced people, according to the agency.
